Chairshot Wrestling News Report: WWE Creates Interim Women’s Championship, New Day-AEW Rumors Grow and More

WWE announces an interim Women’s Championship due to Rhea Ripley’s injury, AEW reportedly discusses plans for The New Day, SmackDown sets major SummerSlam stakes and more.

WWE will crown an interim WWE Women’s Champion at SummerSlam after Rhea Ripley’s recovery timetable remained uncertain.

Elsewhere, reports connecting Kofi Kingston and Austin Creed to AEW continue gaining momentum, another championship match has been added to AEW Redemption, and SmackDown raised the stakes for Saturday Night’s Main Event.

It’s the Chairshot Wrestling News Report for July 18, 2026!

WWE Will Crown Interim Champion Due to Rhea Ripley Injury

Adam Pearce announced on SmackDown that Ripley will remain recognized as WWE Women’s Champion while she continues recovering from a torn meniscus. Instead of vacating the championship, WWE will hold a five-woman Ladder Match at SummerSlam to determine an interim titleholder.

The approach allows WWE to move the championship division forward without ending Ripley’s reign. Once she is medically cleared, Ripley will face the interim champion to determine one undisputed WWE Women’s Champion.

Tiffany Stratton became the first woman to qualify by defeating Jacy Jayne. Paige and Brie Bella neutralized Fallon Henley and Lainey Reid at ringside before Stratton won with the Prettiest Moonsault Ever.

Jade Cargill advanced through far less conventional circumstances. Charlotte Flair attacked Cargill during her match with Nia Jax, giving Cargill a disqualification victory and a place in the Ladder Match. Jax then attacked Flair before Cargill finished the exchange by dropping Flair with Jaded.

Jax will receive another opportunity when she faces Flair in a qualifying match on next week’s SmackDown. Three positions remain open in the SummerSlam match.

Interim WWE Women’s Championship Ladder Match

• Tiffany Stratton
• Jade Cargill
• Three competitors to be determined

Be sure to catch your weekly dose of Drunk Wrestling Intellect on the 328th DWI Podcast!

AEW Reportedly Discussing Plans for Kofi Kingston and Austin Creed

The expectation that Kingston and Creed could eventually land in AEW has strengthened, with a new report indicating that creative discussions have already taken place regarding their potential arrival.

Neither wrestler has signed with AEW, and no debut has been finalized. The discussions instead suggest that AEW is preparing possible directions should the two sides ultimately reach an agreement.

Kingston and Creed left WWE in early May after spending more than 15 years with the company. Big E later confirmed that both men were subject to 90-day noncompete periods, preventing them from immediately appearing for another national wrestling promotion.

There has been significant internal support for bringing the former New Day members into AEW. Multiple AEW wrestlers have publicly expressed interest, while sources within the company were reportedly optimistic about Kingston and Creed wrestling at least one match for the promotion.

The New Day name belongs to WWE, meaning Kingston and Creed would have to adopt a new team name if they reunite elsewhere. Creed has already returned to the name he used outside WWE, while Kingston has been advertised simply as Kofi for post-WWE appearances.

Saturday Night’s Main Event Receives Major SummerSlam Stakes

Gunther and Sami Zayn now have an opportunity to force their way into the Undisputed WWE Championship match at SummerSlam.

Pearce announced that if Gunther and Zayn defeat Undisputed WWE Champion CM Punk and Cody Rhodes at Saturday Night’s Main Event, both men will be added to Punk and Rhodes’ championship match. That would transform the announced singles match into a four-way championship showdown.

Gunther responded by confronting Rhodes, leading Pearce to schedule an immediate match between them. Punk eventually came to ringside, while Zayn attacked the champion and Rhodes outside the ring, causing the match to be stopped. The four men continued brawling as SmackDown went off the air.

The stipulation gives Punk and Rhodes a reason to work together despite their upcoming championship match. A loss would not only create two additional challengers but dramatically reduce each man’s chances of leaving SummerSlam with the title.

SmackDown Results — July 17, 2026

• Finn Bálor defeated Talla Tonga
• Tiffany Stratton defeated Jacy Jayne to qualify for the Interim WWE Women’s Championship Ladder Match
• Jade Cargill defeated Nia Jax by disqualification to qualify for the Interim WWE Women’s Championship Ladder Match
• The War Raiders defeated Fraxiom
• Cody Rhodes vs. Gunther ended without a winner

Don’t Miss Mitchell’s WWE Smackdown Results & Report for July 17th!

AEW Adds Tag Team Championship Match to Redemption

Adam Copeland and Christian Cage will defend the AEW World Tag Team Championship against Claudio Castagnoli and PAC at Redemption on July 26.

The match was set after the Death Riders attacked the champions following their successful defense against Daniel Garcia and Wheeler Yuta on Dynamite. Copeland and Cage responded by challenging Castagnoli and PAC to meet them in Montreal.

The addition brings the Redemption lineup to six matches, with every active AEW men’s singles championship and both primary world championships currently scheduled to be defended.

Updated AEW Redemption Card

• AEW World Championship – Kenny Omega (c) vs. Kevin Knight
• AEW Women’s World Championship – Thekla (c) vs. Willow Nightingale
• AEW World Tag Team Championship – Adam Copeland and Christian Cage (c) vs. Claudio Castagnoli and PAC
• AEW International Championship – Kyle Fletcher (c) vs. Bandido
• AEW National Championship – Mark Davis (c) vs. Andrade El Idolo
• The Painmaker Chris Jericho vs. Tommaso Ciampa

AEW Dynamite Audience Continues to Grow

The July 15 episode of Dynamite averaged 786,000 viewers on TBS, increasing from the 773,000 viewers who watched Kenny Omega defeat MJF for the AEW World Championship one week earlier.

Dynamite also increased from a 0.12 to a 0.15 rating among adults between the ages of 18 and 49. The episode tied for second place among cable programs for the night.

The television totals do not include viewers who watched through the simultaneous HBO Max stream. Streaming audience figures are not publicly released.

Omega’s championship celebration, Kevin Knight’s challenge and Mercedes Moné’s hometown main event helped AEW maintain the audience brought in by the previous week’s title change. The more encouraging number may be the demographic increase, which suggests the follow-up episode attracted more younger viewers instead of merely holding the overall audience.

Royal Rumble Leads WWE’s 2026 Netflix Events

Netflix’s first-half engagement report showed that the Royal Rumble remained WWE’s most-watched premium live event on the platform.

The January 31 event generated 3.1 million worldwide views, ahead of WrestleMania 42 Sunday with three million and WrestleMania Saturday with 2.7 million. The totals exclude American viewers, who received the events through WWE’s domestic broadcast partners.

The combined 5.7 million views for WrestleMania’s two nights surpassed the 5.2 million generated by WrestleMania 41 during the equivalent reporting period. Elimination Chamber drew 1.9 million, Clash in Italy reached 1.6 million and Backlash recorded 1.4 million.

The second season of WWE Unreal generated 2.8 million views, down from the first season’s 4.9 million. A third season is scheduled to arrive on Netflix July 21.

Former WWE Wrestler Siva Afi Dies at 77

Papali’itele Max Amata Taogaga, best known to wrestling audiences as Siva Afi, died this week at 77. His family confirmed his death, although a cause was not announced.

Afi trained under Steve Rickard and Peter Maivia before making his professional debut in 1974. He became a prominent wrestler in Hawaii, held the territory’s heavyweight championship and challenged Ric Flair for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship at Aloha Stadium in 1985.

He joined the WWF in 1986 and was initially introduced as “Superfly Afi.” He later worked under several identities and occasionally teamed with Haku and Tama as an unofficial member of The Islanders before leaving the company in 1988.

WWE’s interim championship decision gives the women’s division an immediate SummerSlam attraction while preserving the eventual payoff of Ripley confronting whoever claims her position. It is a practical solution, but the value of an interim title will depend on whether WWE presents its winner as a genuine champion rather than a temporary placeholder.

Kingston and Creed would enter AEW as one of the most decorated and recognizable teams of their generation. The company already possesses one of wrestling’s deepest tag divisions, and their arrival would create immediate matches with Copeland and Christian, FTR, The Young Bucks and several teams they have never faced.

SmackDown also ensured that Saturday Night’s Main Event carries consequences beyond one evening at Madison Square Garden. Punk and Rhodes are no longer simply trying to survive as partners—they are fighting to prevent their SummerSlam championship match from becoming considerably more complicated.